Demon
by D-Star
Summary: Kagome, Sango, and Kirara begin a peaceful day hunting, but one of them has become the prey. Warnings: Character and animal death.


**Disclaimer:** D has no legitimate ownership of anything related to Inuyasha, much less the show/manga itself.

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**Demon**

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Few clouds streaked across the bright blue sky. Miroku laid against a tree at the edge of a thriving forest while Inuyasha and Shippo slept in Kaede's hut. Sango, Kagome, and Kirara, on the other hand, trekked through the forest, hunting for both tonight's dinner and food to be eaten when the group continued its search for the scattered jewel shards.

Kirara perched on Sango's shoulder, protecting she and Kagome from possible threats; Sango walked quietly in front of Kagome, leading the girl through the forest and teaching her how to hunt.

_Crack_

"Sango-" Kagome hissed.

The older woman held up her hand, signaling Kagome to be quiet. They both stood still, the only sound the rustling of the trees caused by the wind.

_Crack_

Closer, a large animal from the sound of it, easily a week's worth of food. Two weeks' worth if rationed correctly.

"Stay back," Sango whispered, "this should only take a moment."

She crept towards the source of the sound, tightly gripping her boomerang. The forest grew thicker and darker with each step; then, in the corner of her eye, she spotted her prey, a deer.

She inched closer, raising her boomerang above her head, then-

_Crack_

The deer tumbled as Sango captured her boomerang. The wind began to pick up as she walked towards the fallen animal.

_Ssss…_

She knelt beside it, making sure the animal was truly dead.

_Ssssango…_

"Kirara! Stop!" Sango yelled as the small cat demon leapt from her shoulder, bounding further into the forest.

"Kirara!"

Sango stood and ran after her, able to follow the slightest glipse of her companion's tail, then the cat disappeared over a bush. Sango ran through the foliage, gasping as her eyes encountered a small waterfall and the clearest, bluest lake she had ever seen.

"Kirara!"

The small demon sat next to a girl lying on the edge of the lake. Sango rushed over, "Is she okay?"

She touched the young girl's throat, feeling for a pulse or some other sign of life. Kirara jumped quietly over the still girl's form.

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A deep breath, a sigh, and the fluttering of dark brown, almost black, eyelashes. Sango let loose a relieved sigh and knelt back on her heels, "Are you alright?"

The girl raised herself into a sitting position with her thin, bony arms.

"I'm fine," she said. Her dark bangs concealed her eyes, "I'm fine now."

"Do you have somewhere to go? Is there anything I can get you?" Sango asked.

The girl smirked, "Yes, I do have somewhere to be, but" she raised her head, "I could use another body."

"Wha-"

Then Sango saw them, red eyes with slitted pupils and the tip of a diamond shaped mark on the girl's forehead.

"Kirara," she gasped, "what are you doing?"

"I'm getting revenge," she purred, "for all those years spent under the control of humans."

Sango quickly moved to stand, but Kirara's hand shot out to grab her neck. Sango's hand clutched her boomerang, ready to attempt an attack.

_Crack_

Both Sango and the younger girl fell. Then Kirara appeared, jumping over Sango's body. She rose, cupping her hands around her mouth and yelling, "Kagome! Come quick!"

**END**

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**Wikipedia: **A bakeneko is, in Japanese folklore, a cat with supernatural abilities akin to those of the fox or raccoon dog. A cat may become a bakeneko in a number of ways: it may reach a certain age, be kept for a certain number of years, grow to a certain size, or be allowed to keep a long tail. In the last case, the tail forks in two and the bakeneko is then called a nekomata.

A bakeneko will haunt any household it is kept in, creating ghostly fireballs, menacing sleepers, walking on its hind legs, changing its shape into that of a human, and even devouring its own mistress in order to shapeshift and take her place. It also poses a danger if allowed into a room with a fresh corpse; a cat is believed to be capable of reanimating a body by jumping over it.

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**AN: **Wikipedia and Pet Shop of Horrors induced writing. Yes, the ending is pretty open-ended, but I like it that way.

Review please.


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